HOULTON, Maine — Concerns about finances and the delivery of critical services were on the minds of many Aroostook County residents as the partial state shutdown continued into Monday.
Lawmakers worked through the weekend and into Monday in an effort to break an impasse with the governor and with a block of House Republicans over the state budget, but with little movement by press time.
The governor said he primarily objected to any tax increase on Mainers, including a proposal to raise the state’s lodging tax from 9 percent to 10.5 percent.
The impasse was bad news for a number of people in Aroostook County.
Sharon Henderson of Houlton said Friday that she had been looking forward to a visit from several cousins and their family members from Rhode Island over the long Fourth of July weekend. With the shutdown, however, she doubted they would come.
“Just the word ‘shutdown’ turns tourists away,” she said. “This is so upsetting. Who wants to come to a state on vacation if you aren’t really sure you’ll be able to do everything that you want? My relatives said that unless things change, they’ll likely just take a trip to Boston and come later in the summer.”
The governor’s administration has assigned emergency status on between 2,500 and 3,000 of the state’s 12,000 employees during the shutdown which started early Saturday, according to his office. Essential services such as those provided by the Maine State Police, Maine Warden Service and Department of Corrections continue.
Bureau of Motor Vehicles offices across the state are shuttered, however, making applying for a driver’s license or taking a license exam impossible. Online services will continue, so residents will be able to renew licenses. Drivers also cannot seek online permits for overweight or oversized vehicles.
“I am just afraid that you are going to get someone out there who just decides to risk it and drive an overweight vehicle, because they need to keep to their trucking schedule,” said Heidi Wells of Presque Isle. “I mean, what if that causes an accident that seriously injures and kills someone?”
Aside from not being able to buy certain lottery tickets, John Kilcollins of Fort Kent said Monday that the shutdown has not impacted him directly, but he offered an opinion on the situation.
“You can’t buy Megabucks tickets. Beyond that, they’re useless to begin with anyway,” Kilcollins said of the politicians in Augusta.
James H. Page, chancellor of the University of Maine System, said that “almost all University of Maine System operations will continue, as the UMS FY 2018 budget, which funds our operations starting July 1, was passed by the UMS Board of Trustees at its May meeting and is separate from the state budget.”
“We continue to review whether any university activities will be directly affected,” he continued in a statement. “We will provide more information directly to any employees whose activities are solely and directly funded by a contract with the State of Maine or otherwise impacted.”
The courts in Aroostook County as elsewhere around the state have scaled back their schedules. District Courts in Houlton and Fort Kent were the only courthouses open on July 3. Courthouses in Presque Isle and Madawaska were scheduled to be open on Wednesday; Presque Isle and Caribou on Thursday; and Presque Isle on Friday.
The clerks’ offices in the designated courthouses will be minimally staffed, however, entry screening will be in place where possible, and judges will be available in the designated open courthouse in each county.
Designated criminal matters, such as murder trials, grand jury proceedings and motions to revoke or amend bail will continue. Traffic cases, civil violations, post-conviction reviews and some adult and family drug treatment court cases will not be held.
Other services to be provided according to the governor’s office are:
— The Office of Child and Family Services will be staffed around the clock to respond to reports of child and elder abuse or neglect and will make July 5 child care subsidy and welfare payments.
— The veterans’ services bureau will have limited staffing to process time-sensitive veterans’ claims and staff and the Maine Veterans’ Memorial Cemetery System will staff cemeteries in Augusta, Springvale and Caribou to ensure that burials can go forward.
— The Maine Department of Transportation will staff some construction personnel, emergency bridge operators and disaster responders.
— The Maine Department of Environmental Protection will respond to emergencies and cleanups and issue ozone alerts as necessary.
— The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention will operate a state water testing lab and operate on a contingency plan to respond to emergencies.
— Unemployment benefits will be paid, but offices will close and customer service representatives won’t work, meaning initial claims would have to be filed online. Any errors on applications may have to be corrected when a budget passes. Continued claims can be filed by calling an automated phone line at 1-800-593-7660.
Writers Don Eno of the St. John Valley Times and Michael Shepherd of the Bangor Daily News contributed to this report.
